


The Mage's Grandson

by Azdaema



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Character Study, Family Feels, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Grandmothers, Origin Story, Parallels, Pre-Canon, bit of worldbuilding, but at very least Viren-curious, not ~necessarily~ Viren-friendly?, viren named claudia after his grandma pass it on
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-05-16 11:57:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19317691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azdaema/pseuds/Azdaema
Summary: Viren's grandmother teaches him magic; he teaches Claudia.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> There was a brief line in another fic I read about Viren's grandma, and how she was somehow behind him learning magic. That turned into this. Also inspired by [that end credit art of Viren teaching Claudia magic as a kid](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/j9wV2N_EVZ4FjwRyqn1PJnE0zE8=/0x0:1136x640/1320x0/filters:focal\(0x0:1136x640\):format\(webp\):no_upscale\(\)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13968199/tumblr_pf6y94JdY91vyxi7b_1280.png).

The winter night was dark and cold, the sky crisp and clear. Claudia sat on the steps of the porch, her grandson nestled on her lap, and tipped her head back looking up into the great expanse of it. Tonight was a good night for storytelling, she thought.

"Long ago," she began, "humans lived in Xadia, until a human mage discovered dark magic. The elves decided to drive all humans out of their homes, into the hinterlands of the far west. They drove out _every last human tribe_ for the doing of _one man._ "

Viren considered this. "Aren't we all human?"

"Yes, we are all human. But while we have five kingdoms now, back in Xadia humans were made up of tribes beyond number. You know how the birds that come through in the spring have different patterns on their feathers than the ones who come through in the fall?" She waited for the boy to nod in response. "That's because the birds come from different areas. So too with people. Our hair, our skin, our noses—back in Xadia we lived in different regions. Different features from different places. It was after they drove us out of our homelands that we all mixed together." She unpinned the broach she always wore, a round chunk of amethyst, set in copper, and passed it carefully to Viren. "This is from Xadia, from the shore of the eastern sea where our family is originally from—part of the family, anyway."

He clasped it in both hands, eyes wide. "Is there magic in this?"

"Yes," she agreed softly, placing a kiss on the crown of his head. "There is magic in it." She fell quiet for a long moment. "They took the east; they stole the sunrises, the beginnings, leaving us with only endings. The elves have magic in their blood, and they cast us out—in their pride, their superiority, their hypocrisy—for daring to have the same."

"But you have to kill something to get magic," the boy said worriedly.

"And _millions_ died on the trek west," she retorted sharply.

The boy looked up, fear in his eyes at her sudden hash tone.

Claudia sighed. "Yes," she explained gently. "you do. Humans are not born with fur, and so to survive the winter we must take other creatures' pelts. Humans are not born with magic, and so that too we must take." She looked down at the boy in her lap—small and defenseless, without claws or horns or magic—and hugged him close. "We humans are small and weak, and the world is large and dangerous. But my boy, we can rise. We can do great things. Do you remember when I went and got the cataracts cut out of my eyes last year?"

The boy nodded.

"People could not always do that, but we have learned how. Just as we have learned to wield magic. Nature made us small and frail, and placed us in a cruel world, full of those more powerful than ourselves. But we are _clever_ , Viren." She shifted her grandson in her lap, and looked him square in the eyes. "We can do great things. Do not _ever_ believe otherwise."

"Grandmama?"

"Hmm?"

"Will we ever go back to Xadia?"

She considered him. "What do you think?"

"I think this is a test. You just said, ‘don't ever believe people are not capable of great things,’ and now you're testing to make sure I listened."

Claudia burst out laughing. "I suppose was, in a way."

"So we'll go back to Xadia someday?"

"Perhaps. Perhaps. It was because of a great mage that we were driven out. Perhaps it will be the doing of another great mage," she tapped him on the nose with one finger, "that we return." She stretched out her arms, conjuring a light in the palm of her hand. "Ready to practice again?"


	2. Chapter 2

He sat on the balcony with his children, teaching them the constellations. Soren had gotten bored and given up almost immediately, but Claudia was enraptured by the sky.

"What's that one? What's that one? Ooh, I see Soren's ear!" She pointed eagerly, but to this day, Viren is not certain which stars supposedly form the shape of Soren's ear.

After a long, _long_ time, Claudia finally quieted. She sat on his knees and he held her, filled with the same mixture of gratitude and terror that had filled him when he held her for the first time, as an infant.

Her mother had left earlier that month.

(Is it odd that _now_ —as she was aboard a ship taking her away from them—Viren thought more kindly of his once-wife than he had in years? Now, suddenly, she had become something _other_ than the endless, circular fights they had had a thousand times over.)

"I know this month has been really hard, I know you miss your mom a lot," he began.

Claudia looked away.

" _But_ ," he continued, " _one_ thing your mom leaving means is that I can finally teach you magic now, if you want."

She flipped on the dime, turning to look at him with eyes huge and shining. "Really?!?"

Viren grinned. "Who's going to say no?"

She flung her arms around him with excitement so infectious Viren found himself laughing along.

(Soren was a blur, moving to fast for Viren to comprehend. But Claudia—Claudia was like him.)

He turned one hand upward, conjuring a light in his palm. "If we don't practice magic," he began explaining, "then humans were kicked out of Xadia for nothing. Our ancestors paid a terrible price for it, but that price is already paid. Now it's up to us to use it and appreciate it. Do you understand?"


End file.
